Pre-, Pro-, and post-biotics are relatively new terms used to describe a range of materials that have demonstrated benefits in animal health and nutrition. Typically, the term prebiotic refers to a material that stimulates the growth and/or activity of bacteria in the animals' digestive system resulting in beneficial health effects. Prebiotics may be selectively fermented ingredients that allow specific changes, both in the composition and/or activity of the gastrointestinal microflora, which confer health benefits upon the host. Probiotics generally refer to microorganisms that contribute to intestinal microbial balance which in turn play a role in maintaining health. Many species of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) such as, Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium are generally considered as Probiotics, but some species of Bacillus, and some yeasts have also been found as suitable candidates. Postbiotics refer to non-viable bacterial products or metabolic byproducts from probiotic organisms that have biologic activity in the host.
The use of Probiotics to improve animal health and nutrition is well documented in the literature. In addition, prebiotics and postbiotics offer potential alternatives or adjunctive therapies to the use of live microorganisms. There is an increasing appreciation of the impact of pre-, pro-, and postbiotics on the modulation of the immune response, more specifically their role in modulating the expression of cytokines that regulate inflammatory responses at a local and systemic level. The ingestion of probiotic bacteria, for example, can potentially stabilize the immunologic barrier in the gut mucosa by reducing the generation of local pro-inflammatory cytokines. Alteration of the properties of the indigenous microflora by probiotic therapy was shown to reverse some immunologic disturbances in human's characteristic of Crohn's disease food allergy, and atopic eczema.[4, 7-10] Several probiotic species or their postbiotic products induce protective cytokines, including IL-10 and TGF-beta, and suppress pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as TNF, in the mucosa of healthy human patients, human patients with inflammatory bowel disease and mouse models.[1, 2, 11] It is presumed that comparable benefits would be realized in animals. Although there is suggestive evidence for each of these claims, the molecular details behind these mechanisms remain almost entirely undetermined. Not wishing to be bound by theory, it is believed that these mechanisms allow an animal being raised on feed containing pre-, pro- and post-biotics to divert energy away from maintaining a vigorous immune system and redirect it into growth and development.
Therefore there is considerable interest in including pre-, pro-, and post-biotic materials into animal feed. For example, Russian patent 2018313 discloses a powdered, spray-dried animal feed which is based upon milk and which contains certain bifidobacteria and streptococci. The animal feed is aimed primarily at livestock although it is mentioned that the feed may be fed to pets. Despite this growing interest on the benefits of various “biotoc” therapies, the beneficial effects of combined pre-, pro-, and postbiotic therapies on animal health and nutrition is not well documented. There remains an opportunity for compositions combining these therapies to provide a range of benefits both in the commercial livestock and companion pet care industries.